European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders speaks at a news conference on the provisional political agreement on the EU Digital COVID Certificate at the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium, May 21, 2021. Stephanie Lecocq/Pool via REUTERS
EU Digital COVID Certificate (previously called the Digital Green Certificate) is well on track to be ready end of June, as planned. Today's agreement has been reached in record time just two months after the Commission's proposal.
Welcoming this swift progress, President Ursula von der Leyen said: “We are delivering on our commitment to have the EU Digital COVID Certificate up and running before the summer. European citizens are looking forward to travelling again, and today's agreement means they will be able to do so safely very soon.
The EU Digital COVID Certificate is free of charge, secure and accessible to all. It will cover vaccination, test and recovery offering different options to the citizens. It fully respects citizens' fundamental rights, including protection of personal data.
The EU Digital COVID Certificate – key features
Following the agreement reached by the European Parliament and the Council, the EU Digital COVID Certificate:
will cover vaccination, test and recovery;
will be available in a digital and paper-based format, depending on the choice of the recipients, and contain a digitally signed QR code;
will be free of charge, be obtained easily and also available to persons vaccinated before the EU Digital COVID Certificate Regulation has entered into force;
may also be used by Member States for national purposes, if this is provided for in national law.
Member States shall refrain from imposing additional travel restrictions on the holders of an EU Digital COVID Certificate, unless they are necessary and proportionate to safeguard public health.
The Commission will also mobilise €100 million to support Member States in providing affordable tests.
Next Steps
The political agreement will now have to be formally adopted by the European Parliament and the Council. The Regulation will enter into force on 1 July, with a phasing-in period of six weeks for the issuance of certificates for those Member States that need additional time.
In parallel, the Commission will continue to support the Member States in finalising their national solutions for the issuance and verification of EU Digital COVID Certificate, and to provide technical and financial support to Member States to on-board the gateway.
